Folding and stacking machines for articles of linen



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U6NE HAJOS United States Patent 3,204,353 FOLDING AND STACKING MACHINESFOR ARTICLES OF LINEN Eugene Hajos, Fort Lee, N.J., assignor to PremierLaundry, Inc, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Originalapplication May 12, 1953, Ser. No. 354,510, now Patent No. 3,125,657,dated Mar. 31, 1964. Divided and this application Sept. 14, 1961, Ser.No. 146,394 13 Claims. (Cl. 38-7) This is a division of applicationSerial No. 354,510, filed May 12, 1953, now Patent No. 3,126,657.

This invention relates to an improved machine for folding articles oflinen both along their length and across their length.

An important object of this invention is to provide a machine which willreceive ironed articles of linen successively and which willautomatically fold these articles along their length into thirds, ironthe partly folded articles, complete the folding of the articles byfolding them centrally across their length, stack the completely foldedarticles and eject the articles in stacks containing preselected numbersof articles, ready for wrapping.

The commercial laundry industry has devoted a great deal of effort tothe development of new methods and machines for performing theoperations involved in the assembly-line laundering of so-called flatarticles of linen and the like, such as towels, pillow cases and sheets.Some of these operations include washing the articles, drying thearticles, ironing the articles, folding the articles, making stackscontaining selected numbers of the articles and wrapping the stacks fordelivery.

It is well known that the operation of ironing articles of linen hasbeen solved by the development and use on a wide scale of automaticironing machines. These machines, which are capable of high capacity andefficiency, are accordingly large, complex and costly. However, eachironing machine requires the use of a number of human operators who takethe ironed articles and manually feed them to one or more small machinesfor folding the articles. The articles are stacked from below, and thecounting of the stacked articles must be done manually.

The provision of high-speed machines in accordance with the presentinvention almost entirely eliminates the need for human operators forfolding and stacking the articles, and results in more economicallaundry operation.

One important feature of the invention resides in the provision of animproved longitudinal folder having a flexible and resilient main platefixed to the machine frame at its input end and otherwise supportedindirectly by magnets, so as to provide uniform driving traction forarticles of linen carried on the lower face of the conveyor belt, andhaving folding plates located below the main plate.

Another important feature of the invention resides in vthe provision ofa change-of-direction roller permitting an abrupt change in thedirection of movement of the partly folded articles without wrinklingand thereby permitting compact construction of the machine as a whole.Another important feature of the invention resides in the provision ofan improved timing mechanism for insuring accurate central foldingacross their length of articles of varying length. The timing mechanismin accordance with this invention has two separate timers for timing themovement of two towels at a time, as a result of which it is possiblefor articles to follow each other closely upon the conveyor.

Another important feature of the invention resides in the provision ofan improved device for stacking the 3,2045: Patented Sept. 7, 19

"ice

completely folded articles and in an elevator for receiv the stacks.During stacking, the elevator is always sitioned so as to maintain thestack just below the sta ing device. The elevator is lowered in a seriesof sh drops as the stack grows. When a selected number articles arestacked, as determined by an automatic cot er, the elevator abruptlydrops to its lowest positi and a pusher is actuated to eject the stackfrom the 1 vator.

Other objects, advantages and features of the inv tion will becomeapparent from the following desc: tion, in conjunction with the annexeddrawings, in wh a preferred embodiment is disclosed.

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a folding and stack machine according tomy invention, the front of machine being to the left in this view andthe frame 1 input conveyor being partly broken away.

FIG. 2 is a front elevation of the input conveyor the machine of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side elevation, partly in section, of input conveyor of FIG.2, taken on the line 33 that view, showing it attached to the deliveryend of ironing machine.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary plan view of the upper t of the convevorassociated with the front of the Ir frame of the machine, taken on theline 44 of FIG FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of the longitudinal fol ofthe machine of FIGS. 1-5.

FIG. 5a is a detail view in elevation showing the m net in which thefolding plates are carried by the fre of the machine in an adjustablemanner.

FIG. 5b is a corresponding view in section, taker right angles to FIG.5a, illustrating the mounting of lower folding plate and taken on theline 5b--5b FIG. 54:.

FIG. 6 is a view in longitudinal section through middle of thelongitudinal folder of FIG. 5, taken on line 66 of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a view in vertical cross section thro the folder of FIG. 5,taken on the line 77 of that ure, showing the upper folding plate makingthe longitudinal fold.

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 7 on the line 8 of FIG. 5, showing thelower folding plate beginning second longitudinal fold.

FIG. 9 is a similar View taken on the line 95 FIG. 5, showing the secondlongitudinal fold comple FIG. 10 is a top plan view of the front part ofmachine, taken on an elevation just below the folc plates on the line10-10 of FIG. 1, showing some of drive mechanism and part of the mainconveyor mechanism.

FIG. 11 is a vertical longitudinal section through transverse foldingmechanism of the machine, taken the line 11-11 of FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is a longitudinal elevation from the real the machine as viewedin FIG. 1, showing part of stacking mechanism for the folded towelslocated al: the elevator.

FIG. 13 is a view transversely across the mach taken on the line 1313 ofFIG. 12 and showing mechanism of that figure, the angle irons of thestac] mechanism being shown in their normal or up posit FIG. 14 is alongitudinal section through the mi of the machine from rear to front,reading from let right, taken on the line 1414 of FIG. 13.

FIG. 15 is a vertical view, partly in section, t2 across the stackingmechanism of FIG. 14 on the 15-15 of that figure, showing the angleirons in t stacking positions.

FIG. 16 is a view in side elevation from the right a machine, showingthe elevator in an up or stackosition.

3. 17 is a view in vertical section through the elevator G. 16, taken onthe line 1717 of that figure.

3. 18 is a diagram of a portion of the compressed stribution system ofthe machine.

3. 19 is a plan view of the timing mechanism C re transverse folder,certain parts being removed for 20 is a sectional view in elevation ofthe timing anism of FIG. 19, viewed from the right of that on the line20-20.

3. 21 is a view in elevation from the right of FIG. howing the timercams for the transverse folder 1 and other switches.

3. 22 is a diagrammatic plan view of the complete g mechanism of themachine.

38. 23a, 23b and 23c are a schematic diagram of lectrical circuit of themachine. FIG. 23a shows ircuit for the transverse folder and also showsthe t for miscellaneous control devices.

3'. 2312 shows the circuit of the counter for deterg the number ofarticles stacked.

3. 230 shows the circuits of the stacking mechathe elevator and thepusher for removing stacked v s from the machine. Fr. 24 is a transversesection of the stacking mechshowing a modification thereof. :6. 25 is afragmentary section on the line 2525 G. 24. an reference to the drawingsin detail, it will be that the machine is generally shown in itsentirety 3. 1. In this and other views, articles of linen or ke aredesignated by the reference letter T. In 11, except as specificallyindicated below, the drawlT substantially to scale of a working model of,achine, and reference is made to the drawings to etc the disclosure.For convenience, the articles en T will be referred to as towels,although it will parent that other articles of linen may be folded 5machine. I will first describe the manipulation towels generally. 1. 1shows a portion of an input conveyor A sup- 1 by machine frame 1 at thefront or input end of achine. Said input conveyor A is shown in detail38. 2-4. Towel T enters the machine at the upper hereof, where ittravels along the bottom face of conveyor belt through longitudinalfolder B. ongitudinal folder B is shown in detail in FIGS. Longitudinalfolder B folds towels T longitudinally verlapping thirds. the rear ofthe machine, change-of-direction roller mounted on frame 1 with its axisextending laterally. yor belt 10 passes over, in front of and belowe-of-direction roller 11 and is spaced therefrom. ;e-of-direction roller11 is positioned to intercept T as it leaves longitudinal folder B andis adapted erse the direction of movement of towel T. Conbelt 10 againreceives towel T as it leaves change- :ction roller 11 and is adapted tocarry towel T idly upon its upper face on a level below that of idinalfolder B in the direction of the front of the me. its forward movementthe towel T passes operbetween belt 10 and an ironer 12 which is supbyframe 1 in normal operative engagement with D. A spring-controlled armor rod 13 located just rd of the ironer 12 is adapted to move belt 10out erative engagement with ironer 12 when belt 10 noving, a solenoid ISholding rod 13 clear of belt ile the latter is moving. wardly of ironer12 and after passing rod 13, towel 'atively engages a timer switch lever14, which conhe operation of, timer mechanism C, said timer mechanismbeing shown in detail in FIGS. 19-22 and being mounted at the bottomfront of frame 1.

Forwarclly of timer switch 14, conveyor belt 10 passes over, in frontand under idler roller 15 and then travels rearwardly. As towel T passesover roller 15, it is folded across its width and pushed rearwardly bytransverse folder lever 16 of transverse folder mechanism D. Timermechanism C controls the operation of folder lever 16 so that it foldstowel T centrally across its length. This transverse folder mechanism isshown in detail in FIGS. 10 and 11.

The now completely folded towel T'is carried rearwardly against thebottom face of main conveyor belt 10 until it enters stacking'mechanismE. Conveyor belt 10, which is continuous, then follows a return path, inwhich it is idle, to the point where it receives towel T from inputconveyor A. Stacking mechanism E is suitably actuated, when towel T isfully received therein, to drop towel T upon stack 17. Stackingmechanism E is shown in detail in FIGS. 12-15.

The towel stack 17 is supported by an elevator F which extends above thebottom of frame 1 and which gradually drops downwardly as it receivestowels T. When stack 17 contains a predetermined number of towels, meansare provided for rapidly dropping elevator F to its lowest position,shown in FIG. 1, and for driving a pusher 18 rearwardly to force stack17 off elevator F and onto an outlet platform 19 mounted on the rear offrame 1. Elevator F is shown in detail in FIGS. 16 and 17.

Main conveyor belt The disposition of main conveyor belt 10 and thedrive means therefor are clearly shown in FIGS. 1, 10 and 11. Thedirection of movement of belt 10 is shown by arrow 2 (FIG. 1).

Lateral idler roller 20, which is mounted upon frame 1 at the top frontthereof, will be taken for convenience as the starting and return pointof the continuous belt 10. A further lateral idler roller 21 is mountedupon frame 1 near the top rear thereof. There is a lateral idler roller22 fixed on a laterally extending horizontal shaft 461 rotatably mountedupon frame 1 behind and on a level with roller 21. Lateral idler roller23 is mounted upon frame 1 somewhat below roller 22. Belt 10 passes infront of and under roller 20, under roller 21, over and behind roller 22and behind and under roller 23.

There is a lateral idler roller 24 mounted upon frame 1 at about thelongitudinal center thereof and on about the level of roller 23. Lateralidler roller 15 is mounted upon frame 1 near the front thereof and belowroller 24. Belt 10 passes over roller 24 and over, in front of and underroller 15.

A pair of approximately horizontal arms 25 are mounted at their rearends upon frame 1 generally below and laterally of roller 15 by means oflateral pivots 26 (see FIG. 11). Lateral shaft 27 connects arms 25intermediate their ends. Roller 28 is mounted upon shaft 27 directlybelow roller 15. Lateral rod 29 connects the front ends of arms 25. Rods30 extend upwardly from rod 29 through suitable openings (not shown) inframe 1. Spring 31 on each rod 30 bears between frame 1 and stop nut 32on the upper end of rod 30, so that the front ends of arms 25 are urgedupwardly. As a result, roller 28 is held under tension against the partof belt 10 passing under roller 15.

Lateral shaft 33 is turnably mounted upon frame 1 nearer the rear of themachine and on an approximate level with roller 15. Sprocket gear 34 isfixed to an end of shaft 33, and roller 35 is fixedly mounted upon shaft33. Lateral roller 36 is mounted upon frame 1 forwardly of and slightlyabove the level of roller 35.

A pair of arms 37 are mounted upon frame 1 by means of lateral pivots 33and extend upward and forwardly therefrom (see FIGS. 1 and 11). Lateralidler roller 39 is connected between the upper ends of arms 37, and islocated below the level of roller 24. Springs 40 are connected betweenan intermediate point of each arm 37 and a respective point on frame 1located forwardly of arm 37, and the springs urge roller 39 forwardly.

Belt extends under, behind and over roller 35, under roller 36 and infront of and over roller 39. Vertically spaced lateral idler rollers 41and 42 are mounted upon frame 1 rearwardly of rollers 23 and 22. Belt 10extends rearward-1y from roller 39, under and behind roller 41, behindand over roller 42 and back over the starting roller 20.

As will become fully apparent below, towel T operatively engages belt 10from starting roller until belt 10 travels under roller 35, with theexception that towel T is out of engagement with belt 10 after it passesunder roller 21 and while it passes over rollers 22 and 23. During thereturn path of belt 10, from roller back to roller 20, it is out ofengagement with towel T. Belt 10 is maintained under tension by theaction of spring upon roller 39.

Electric motor 43 located near the bottom of the frame 1 of the machineserves as the drive means for main conveyor belt 10. Motor 43 has alongitudinally rearward-1y extending driven shaft 44 which drives alateral driven shaft 45 mounted in reduction gear box 46. Sprocket gear47 is mounted upon shaft 45. Endless drive chain 48 meshes withsprockets 47 and 34 and also meshes with a sprocket gear 49 fixed to alateral shaft 50 mounted upon frame 1 rearwardly of sprocket 34. Chain48 drives sprocket 34, together with shaft 33 and drive roller 35, aswell as sprocket 49. Roller 35 drives belt 10.

Input conveyor Input conveyor A is shown in detail in FIGS. 2-4. Thedrive means for input conveyor A is clearly shown in FIGS.1 and 10.

Input conveyor A is supported by a pair of laterally spaced brackets 3mounted upon the front of frame 1. Shaft 51 extends turnably betweensaid brackets 3. A pair of input conveyor frame arms 52 are respectivelyturnably mounted on shaft 51 adjacent the respective brackets 3 andextend forwardly and downwardly therefrom. A pair of rollers 53 arefixed to shaft 51 intermediate arms 52. Rollers 53 are laterally spacedfrom each other.

Sprocket wheel 54, which is the drive sprocket for conveyor A, is fixedto shaft 51 between rollers 53.

There is a sprocket wheel 55 fixed to the opposite end of shaft 33 fromsprocket 34 (see FIGS. 10 and 11). A lateral shaft 56 is turnablymounted at its ends upon blocks 144 which are respectively fixed toframes 1 near the front thereof and below sprocket 54. Sprocket wheel 57is mounted on an end of shaft 56 in line with sprocket 55. Shaft 58 isturnably mounted upon frame 1 in front of shaft 56 and carries sprocket59. Endless drive chain 60 extends meshingly behind and under sprocket55, over sprocket 57, under, in front of and over sprocket 59, and oversprocket 55 and hence back to its starting point.

Sprocket wheel 61 is fixed to the central portion of shaft 56. Endlesschain 62 meshes with sprocket 61 and sprocket 54 in the usual manner todrive the input conveyor.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that motor 43 drives shaft 51 ina clockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 3.

The front ends of arms 52 are connected to a crossiron 63 which extendslaterally outwardly beyond both arms 52. Frame arms 64 are connected tothe respective ends of iron 63 and extend both forwardly and rearwardlythereof in substantially the same direction as arms 52.

One end of air cylinder 65 is connected to frame 1 by lateral pivot 66.Cylinder 65 extends upwardly and for wardly from pivot 66. Plunger 67extends out of the upper end of cylinder 65 and is pivotally connectedto lateral shaft 68, which extends between arms 64 wardly of iron 63.

As will be further described below, compressed is supplied to theinterior of cylinder 65 to urge plur 67 and hence the front end ofconveyor A upwardly.

Arms 64 have upwardly extending ears at the his end thereof, betweenwhich lateral shaft 69 extei Four rollers 70 are mounted upon shaft 69.Arms also have downwardly extending ears at the higher thereof, betweenwhich lateral shaft 71 extends. A 1 of rollers 72 are mounted upon shaft71 adjacent the spective arms 64.

Lateral shaft 73 extends turnably between the fr ends of arms 64 andalso extends outwardly from th Four rollers 74 are fixed to shaft 73between arms 6 work with the rollers 70 at the upper ends of the arms ashereinafter described.

Arms 64 have depending portions near their 10 ends, between which shaft75 extends. Four individ bell crank levers 76 are turnably mounted atintermed. points thereof upon shaft 75. One end of each lever extendsforwardly of shaft 75 and has a lateral roller turnably mounted thereon.The other end of each is 76 is connected by spring 78 to a lateral rod97 extend between arms 64, so as to urge roller 77 downwardly.

A pair of center belts 79 are provided. Each belt extends around aroller 53 and a center roller 74 also extends over a center roller 70'and under a spri pressed roller 77. Belts 79 are driven by chain 62 antturn drive rollers 74.

A pair of side belts 80 are provided. Each belt 86 tends around a sideroller 70, a roller 72, a spring-pres roller 77 and a side roller 74.Belts 80 are driven rollers 74 through the belts 79 and shaft 73.

Belts 79 and 80 move in the direction of arrow 81 (F 3). Each of thesebelts is individually tensioned by associated roller 77. Conveyor A iswider than fram: except at its upper portion, where belts 79 extend abbelts 80.

A pair of arms 82 are positioned outside the respect arms 64 and areconnected to the lower part of these a1 by lateral pivots 83. Said arms82 extend forwardly pivots 83. A relatively heavy idler roller 84 isconnec between arms 82 and rests against the front faces of b 79 and 80above rollers 74.

Input conveyor .A is adapted to be placed in posit relative to aconveyor belt 85 (FIG. 3) to receive tovs T carried by said belt 85. Asan example, belt 85 n be the output conveyor belt of an ironer. Belt 85shown as moving in the direction of arrow 88 aroun roller 86 mountedupon a lateral shaft 87. Said shaft is fixed to the ironer frame (notshown). In order position conveyor A properly relative to ironer beltconveyor A is provided with a pair of arm 89 turna mounted on therespective ends of shaft 73 outside a1 64. Each arm 89 extends forwardlyand downwardly shaft 73. The rear end portion of arm 89 has an arcu slot90 through which screw 91 extends. Screw 91 tends into a suitablythreaded hole (not shown) in a 64 and may be tightened to lock arm 89 ina selec turned position on shaft 7 3.

The front ends of arms 89 are joined by a lateral st 92 upon which idlerroller 93 is mounted. Shaft 92 2 extends outwardly of arms 89 and haspulleys 94 moun on its outer ends. Pulleys 95 are mounted on the res;tive outer ends of shaft 73. Idler pulley belts 96 ext around therespective pairs of pulleys 94 and 95.

In the use of the machine, frame 1 is rolled upon cast 9 until idlerbelts 96 abut ironer conveyor belt 85 un roller 86, as clearly shown inFIG. 3. The air pressure cylinder 65 upon plunger 67 holds conveyor A inp1 tion against belt 85. The length of belts 96 permits pl ing conveyorA in position against roller 86 located varying heights above the floor.Preferably, roller also abuts belt 85, but the provision of belts 96extends a of contact when it is impractical for roller 93 'to belt 85.

hen conveyor A is thus positioned relative to belt 85 roller 86, theleading end of a towel T carried on the r face of belt 85 strikes thefront faces of belts 79 80 and is carried thereby under roller 84 beforethe ng end of towel T leaves belt 85. Preferably, towel es not exceed inwidth the distance between the reive outer side edges of belt 80.

, towel T moves past the belts 80, the side portions wel T drop downoutside the respective side arms 52.

Longitudinal folder ngitudinal folder B is shown in detail in FIGS. 5-9.use the plates thereof are very thin, being approx- :ly one eighth of aninch thick, the thickness and ng of the plates has been exaggerated inthese views. ngitudinal folder B includes a ferromagnetic main 100 whichis positioned just below main conveyor and which extends from a pointjust behind roller a point just in front of the point at which belt 10 sbetween rollers 11 and 21. Near its front end,

plate 100 is supported from below by a laterally exng frame portion 8.The remainder of plate 100 is )rted in a manner to be described below.The front )f plate 100 is positioned just behind the rear ends of 79.rte 100 has a central front-end extension 101 which s over sprocket 54and is curved downwardly in front rocket 54 (see FIGS. 2, 3 and 4).Plate extension s located between belts 79. Plate extension 101pretowels T from striking sprocket 54. Also, plate lSlOlIl 101 carries aswitch AE whose switch lever 102 K15 upwardly between belts 79 in aposition to be :ssed by a towel T carried by belts 79, whereby to switchAE. As will become fully apparent below, losing of switch AE by a towelactuates a timer which the operation of the machine if the towel doesnot ge from the stacker within a specified time interval. 1 leavinginput conveyor belts 79, towel T travels een the lower face of mainconveyor belt 10 and the r face of main folder plate 100, as clearlyshown [G. 3. s of approximately the same width as the rear part )nveyorA, plate 100 being of somewhat reduced 1 rearwardly thereof (FIG. Aplurality of tudinally spaced weights 103 rest upon the upper of beltrearwardly of roller 20, so that belt 10 onally engages towel T. Eachweight 103 has a [04 extending downwardly from its upper face and dingthe width thereof. A lateral rod 105 is fixedly Jrted by frame 1 andrides in said slot 104. Said Its 103 are located forwardly andrearwardly of e portion 8. arwardly of weights 103, and below theuppermost [1 portion of belt 10, frame 1 has a longitudinally exng frameportion 7 (see FIGS. 6 to 9). A plurality uds 106 depend from frameportion 7 and support gitudinally extending, non-magnetic plate 107spaced said frame portion 7. Preferably, studs 106 are ally disposedbeyond the respective side edges of plate 100, and are evenly spaced onboth sides of 107 along the entire length thereof. Plate 107 :ds almostas far rearwardly as main plate 100 (see 1). plurality of spaced magnets108 are supported be- 1 frame portion 7 and the upper face of plate 107.:rably, magnets 108 are disposed in two longitudinaltending rows locatedinwardly of the respective side i of plate107 (see FIG. 5). .ch magnet108 is horseshoe-shaped, with its pole s extending downwardly from itscross-piece and tudinally alined, and with its cross-piece fixed to eportion 7 by bolt 450, or optionally by a strap. ate 100 is preferablyonly one-sixteenth of an inch Preferably, the front end portion of platethick and is flexible and resilient. Magnets 108 support that portion ofplate (most of the lengths thereof) which is not supported by frameportion 8 and hold plate 100 evenly in frictional abutment with thelower face of belt 10, so as to hold belt 10 in operative engagementwith towel T.

Upper and lower non-magnetic, longitudinally extending folding plates109 and 110 are provided. The front of upper folding plate 109 ispreferably located forward of the front of plate 107. The left side ofplate 109, as viewed in FIGS. 7-9, extends laterally outwardly of mainplate 100 and is supported by angle iron 451. The right side of plate110, as viewed in FIGS. 7-9, is similarly supported by another angleiron 451. Both angle irons are similarly mounted on the frame, that ofplate 110 being shown in detail in FIGS. 5a and 5b.

Angle iron 451 extends longitudinally and has a horizontal arm fixed toplate 110 and a vertical arm 452 adjustably supported by frame 1. Inorder to support arm 452, a plurality of vertical channel irons arefixed to frame 1. Each said channel iron has a longitudinal cross-arm453 and laterally inwardly extending end arms 454. Said channel iron islocated outwardly of angle iron 451. Block 455 is positioned betweenarms 454 and is vertically adjustably secured to each arm 454 by meansof respective screws 456 which extend through respective verticallyelongated solts 457 in arm 454 and into respective thread holes (notshown) in the side of block 455.

Angle iron arm 452 is attached to each block 455 by means of arespective screw 458 which extends through arm 452 and into a threadedhole in block 455, the head screw 458 abutting the inner wall of arm452. Additional screws 459 extend through slot 460, in channel iron arm453 and through respectivethreaded holes in block 455. Screws 459 arerespectively located above and below screw 458, and the inner ends ofscrews 459 abut iron arm 452. It will be apparent that by adjustment ofscrews 459, plate 110 may be rocked to a selected inclination relativeto the horizontal. The vertical position of pate 110 may be adjusted bymeans of screw 456.

The front portion 111 of the right edge of plate 109, as taken in FIGS.7-9, meets the left edge'thereof at the extreme front of plate 109 anddiverges rearwardly therefrom. The rear portion 112 of the right edge ofplate 109 is parallel to and preferably located in vertical alignmentwith the right edge of main plate 100.

The front of lower folding plate 110 is located rearwardly of the frontof plate 109 and preferably slightly forward of a plate edge portion112. The right side of plate 110, as viewed in FIGS. 7-9, extendslaterally outward bound main plate 100 and is fixed to a second angleiron 451, which is supported entirely similarly to the first angle iron451.

The front portion 113 of the left edge of lower folding plate 110, astaken in FIGS. 7-9, meets the right edge thereof at the extreme front ofplate 110 and diverges rearwardly therefrom. The rear portion 114 of theleft edge of plate 110 is parallel to and preferably located in verticalalignment with the left edge of main plate 100 (see FIG. 9).

Plates 109 and 110 extends rearwardly to approximately the same point asplate 100.

In operation, when towel T first enters folder B, it has a centralportion resting upon main plate 100 and respective side portionsextending below the side edges of plate 100. One of these side portionsof towel T strikes the portion of upper folder plate edge portion 111protruding laterally beyond plate 100 and rides along said edge portion111 so that it is forced between plate 100 and plate 109. The second andthird positions of the towel portions in FIG. 5, as well as FIGS. 7 and8, clearly show this step. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the leading edge113 of the lower folding plate 110 makes the second 9 longitudinal foldof the towel under the upper folding plate 109.

The width of plate 100 relative to standard towel width is optionallychosen so that towel T is folded approximately into thirds. However, inview of the further folding of towel T, to be described in detail below,it does not matter if the center portion of towel T is wider than thetwo side portions folded under said center portion. In fact, the centerportion of towel T is usually wider than said folded side portions.

Change-of-direczz'on roller Change-of-direction roller 11 is clearlyshown in FIG. 1. Roller 11 is fixedly supported by a lateral shaft 120turnably mounted upon frame 1. Pulley 462, which is fixed to shaft 461,and pulley 463, which is fixed to shaft 120, are coupled by pulley belt464 so as to drive roller 11. Preferably, the linear circumferentialspeed of roller 11 exceeds the linear speed of belt 10.

A curved transversely and laterally extending plate 121 is supported byframe 1 behind roller 11 and in front of rollers 22 and 23. The frontface of plate 121 is concave in vertical longitudinal section and issufiiciently spaced from the periphery of roller 11 to accommodate thepartly folded towel T.

As the leading end of towel T leaves folder B at the rear end thereof,it falls upon the periphery of roller 11. The trailing portion of towelT continues to be pushed rearwardly between belt 10 and plate 100, sothat towel T drops between roller 11 and plate 121. The movement oftowel T between roller 11 and plate 121 is also aided by gravity, by thedriven turning of roller 11, and by the frictional engagement of towel Tbetween roller 11 and plate 121. Towel T is carried forwardly upon belt10 after leaving roller 11.

Ironer Ironer 12 is clearly shown in FIG. 1.

Ironer 12 is supported by plate 122 which extends laterally andlongitudinally beyond it and which is supported by frame 1 in a suitablemanner (not shown). Belt 10 is normally supported by rollers 23 and 24so as to abut the lower face of plate 122 frictionally. The rear endportion 123 of plate 122 is curved upwardly away from belt 10.

A front casing 124 containing heater elements and a rear casing 125containing a thermostat are mounted on top of plate 122. As will beexplained in detail below, the thermostat and the heater elements areadapted to be connected in a suitable electric circuit in order to heatplate 122 to a selected temperature. Towel T passes under plate portion123 and then moves frictionally between plate 122 and belt 10, so thatthe heated plate creases the longitudinal folds in towel T. This isoften necessary to prevent unfolding of towel T when the folded sideportions are very narrow.

A generally upstanding bracket 126 is mounted on top of casing 124 atthe front thereof. Ironer solenoid IS is mounted upon the front face ofbracket 126 and is spaced above belt 10. Solenoid IS has a transverseplunger 127 extending therethrough and coupled at its upper end, abovesolenoid IS, to bracket 126 by means of compression spring 128. Thelower tip of plunger 127, below solenoid IS, carries cross-rod 13. Saidcross-rod 13 is normally urged towards belt 10 by spring 128. However,when belt 10 is moving, solenoid IS is energized by means to bedescribed in detail below, and holds rod 13 spaced above belt 10.

When belt 10 stops for any reason, solenoid IS is deenergized, andplunger 127 is forced downwardly by the action of spring 128. As aresult, rod 13 engages belt 10 and moves it to its broken-line positionof FIG. 1, in which it is spaced from plate 122. This prevents theresidual heat of plate 122 from burning belt 10.

Towel length switch Towel length switch X is shown in detail in FIGS.and 11.

Towel length switch X is supported by means of l eral plate 130. Plate130 is supported by frame 1 2 bears frictionally against the lower faceof belt 10 f wardly of roller 24. Bracket 131 is attached to plate 1beyond one side edge of belt 10 and extends above 1 10. The casing ofswitch X is mounted on the inner f: of bracket 131 and extends over belt10 and is spat therefrom. Said casing carries an inwardly extendi:turnable shaft 132 to which one end of actuating lever is fixed. Lever14 is made of spring wire and exter downwardly and forwardly from shaft132. Lever has a curved free end portion 133.

Lever end portion 133 normally rests lightly upon l: 19, in whichposition switch X is open. While the long of towel T is passing betweenbelt 10 and lever end p tion 133, thereby raising the end portion,switch X mains closed with corresponding actuation of timer met anism Cto be explained in detail below.

In order to ensure positive movement of switch le 14 from its closingposition to its open position, OlJStl'l tion member 134 is connected toplate 130 at the ear side of belt 10 as bracket 131. Obstruction member1 extends upwardly past the side edge of belt 10 and p: trudes inwardlythereof and has a longitudinal slot 4e Normally, lever end portion 133extends through slot 4 against belt 10. Obstruction member 134 has a lovrear lateral knife edge 135 which is forwardly inclin from the outeredge of member 134. The rear face member 134 is forwardly inclined fromedge 135, whi frictionally abuts belt 10.

A side portion of the front edge of the moving tov T strikes edge 135and it rides over obstruction 134. a result, the side portion of towel Tpasses under swit lever 14 and raises its end portion 133 out of slot 46thereby causing a greater movement of lever 14 than t flattened partlyfolded towel T could cause. Switch is closed when lever 14 is thusraised.

Transverse folder Tranverse folder D is shown in detail in FIGS. 10 a11.

Folder D includes a lateral shaft turnably mount upon frame 1 aboveroller 15. Lever arms 16 are spectively fixedly mounted upon shaft 140and exte forwardly therefrom. Arms 16 are respectively in apprc imatelongitudinal alinement with the side edges of b 10 as it passes overroller 15.

Folder blade 141 is connected to the lower ends arms 16 and extendsbetween the two arms 16 and a] rearwardly thereof. A further lever 142is fixed to sh: 140 intermediate arms 16 and extends upwardly frc shaft140. Lever 142 is located forward of frame p tion 8 and is connectedthereto by spring 143. Tensi spring 143 urges lever 142 in a clockwisedirection abc the axis of shaft 140, as viewed in FIG. 11, and therenormally maintains blade 141 in its front, inactive po tion.

Blocks 144 are fixed to frame 1 outwardly from t respective arms 16.Each block 144 carries on its r6 face a spring blade 145 which extendsbelow block 1 Blade 141 has lateral projections with respective upstaring flanges 146 which bear rubber stops 147 on the respt tive frontfaces thereof. These stops 147 are respective adapted to strike therespective rear faces of the lOVt end portions of blades '145, wherebythe forward mot ment of blade 141 under the urging of spring 143,checked.

Folder solenoid FS is mounted upon frame 1 forward of lever 142.Solenoid plunger 148 extends rearward c of the casing of solenoid FS andcarries on its rear end yoke 149. The upper end of the lever 142 extendsbetwet arms of yoke 149 and is attached thereto by lateral vt 150. heaction of solenoid FS is controlled by timer mecha- 1 C, in a manner tobe described in detail below. When noid FS is energized, plunger 148 isdrawn forwardly, nst the action of spring 143, and blade 141 is moved'wardly to its broken-line position of FIG. 11, in which substantiallyhorizontal and its rear edge approaches opening between rollers 15 and28. older limit switch FL is mounted upon frame 1 below lger 148 and infront of lever 142. Laterally extending er limit switch lever 151 isattached to the rear of the ng of switch FL by transverse pivot 152.When lever is drawn rearwardly by plunger 148, lever 142 strikes r 151and opens the normally closed switch FL. As be fully explained below,this results in the immediate rruption of the circuit of solenoid FS, sothat spring returns blade 141 to its normal position. The moveit offolder blade 141 between its two positions is exiely rapid.

ongitudinally extending, metal plate 153 is centrally aorted by frameportion 469 rearwardly of rollers 15 28. Plate 153 extends rearwardlyjust below and roller 35 and also past sprocket 49. Belt 10frictioneng-ages the upper face of plate 153. Plate 153 has a 'nwardlyinclined front extension 154 which is posied proximate to the openingbetween rollers '15 and 28. e 153 is downwardly bowed in longitudinalsection and 3 formed that its ends are upwardly springable. AS sult,plate 153 exerts uniform tension on belt 10 along ength.

lade 141 is timed to move rearwardly to strike the cenlateral line oftowel T after it has passed switch X. le 141 folds towel T on that line,and the two resulttowel portions on either side of the fold line are ledby blade 141 between belt 10 and roller 28. ng 31 urges roller 28upwardly to catch towel T frically between roller 28 and the portion ofbelt 10 carried er roller 15. As .a result, belt 10 carries the foldede1 rearwardly over plate extension 154 and hence be- :u belt 10 andplate 153. Towel T is carried rear- ;lly between belt 10 and plate 153toward stacking hanism E.

he lower face of blade 141 is substantially horizontal lie instant towelT is folded. The upper face 466 of e 141 is then upwardly forwardlyinclined. As a It, towel T is frictionally engaged between blade faceand belt '10 before it is frictionally engaged between 10 and roller 28.This makes it possible to limit rear- :1 movement of blade 141 (by meansof the usual limit within solenoid F for rod 148) slightly forwardly hepoint to which blade 141 would otherwise have to 'e, thereby minimizingthe danger of blade 141 becomjammed between the rollers. Also, the thickwedgee of blade 141 helps to prevent disturbance of the fold ;ed bymovement of the upper folded portion relative he lower folded portionresulting from contact of upper folded portion with belt '10. Roller 28is prefercovered with rubber for greater frictional engagement the lowerfolded portion of towel T to aid in even 'ement thereof.

Stacking mechanism :acking mechanism E is shown in detail in FIGS. 12-

It will be noted that FIG. 12 shows the opposite side 1e machine fromthe side shown in FIG. 1.

:acking mechanism E includes a conveyor belt syswhich frictionallyengages the upper surface of a :1 T and draws it onto a pair of stackermembers or having smooth operating faces, here shown as angle s 178,until the towel T lies above the desired stack tion. Then the stackermembers are moved from r normal support position to a retracted positioni :h the towel T is free to drop.

he stacker conveyor system includes the previously 12 mentioned lateralshaft 50 whose sprocket 49 is driven by chain 48 (FIG. 1). It waspreviously stated that shaft 50 is supported by frame 1. The manner inwhich shaft 50 is supported will now be explained more fully.

Intermediate the ends of shaft 50, one or more levers 160 are fixedthereto. This lever 160 extends upwardly and forwardly from shaft 50 andis connected at its upper end by lateral pivot 161 to block 162. Block162 abuts the lower face of a cross-arm 163 of frame 1 and has anupstanding flange 164 located in front of arm 163. Adjusting screw 165extends through flange 164 and into arm 163 and helps to hold block 162to arm 163. The setting of screw 165 may be varied to adjust thelongitudinal position of shaft 50.

Intermediate its ends, lever 160 is connected by adjusting screw 166 andblock 167 to the lower face of arm 163, to permit vertical adjustment ofshaft 50.

A pair of laterally spaced pulleys 168 are fixed to shaft 50.

A further lateral shaft 169 is located rearwardly of shaft 50 andcarries two further pulleys 168 in respective longitudinal alinementwith the front pulleys 168. One or more further levers are fixed toshaft 169 and extend upwardly and rearwardly therefrom and areoptionally adjustably attached to frame 1 similarly to thefirst-mentioned lever 160.

A pair of pulley V-belts 170 extend around the respective longitudinalpairs of pulleys 168 and serve as conveyor belts for towel T. Plate 153extends Iearwardly under and past the front pulleys 168, so that theleading edge of towel T moving between plate 153 and main conveyor belt10 and passing out of engagement with belt 10 passes into the spacebetween belts 170 and plate 153 before the trailing edge of towel Tpasses belt 10 (see FIGS. 1 and 14).

The angle irons 178 of stacking mechanism E are supported by means oftwo sets of columns 171 which depend from frame 1 laterally outwardly ofpulley belts 17 0 and which extend below said belts 170. Said columns171 are also located longitudinally between the front and rear pulleys168, and the columns of each set are longitudinally alined.

The bottom portions of the columns 171 of each set are formed to providesuitable bearings through which a longitudinal shaft 172 extendsturnably. A pair of end arms 173 and a pair of intermediate arms 174 aremounted upon shaft 172.

At their other ends, the arms 173 and 174 associated with each shaft 172are fixed to the outer face, as viewed in FIG. 13, of the transverselyand longitudinally extending arm 176 of one of the angle irons 178 ofstacking mechanism E. In the normal position of FIGS. 12-14, the otherarm 177 of angle iron 178 is integral with the upper edge of arm 176 andextends horizontally inwardly thereof.

In order to regulate the turned positions of angle irons 178, the angleiron arms 176 are coupled to the plunger 179 of an air cylinder 180.Said air cylinder 180 is fixed to frame 1 laterally outwardly from oneof the angle irons 178 and at the front part of stacking mechanism E.Plunger 179 extends out of the rear end of cylinder 180. Links 181 aresecured to the rear end of plunger 179 by lateral pivot 181a. One end ofarm 182 is positioned between the links 181 and connected thereto bylateral pivot 183. Arm 182 extends upwardly from links 181.

Lateral shaft 184 is turnably mounted upon frame 1 and extends above andlaterally outwardly from angle irons 178. The upper end of arm 182 isdivided to provide fork arms 185 between which an outer end of shaft 184is located. Arms 185 are held together above shaft 184 by means 186 inorder to fix arm 182 to shaft 184.

Brackets 187 are respectively fixed to the outer faces of the respectiveangle iron arms 176 between the arms 174 respectively associatedtherewith. Links 222 are con-

3. APPARATUS FOR FOLDING ARTICLES OF LINEN WHICH COMPRISES AN ELONGATEDSUPPORT PLATE FOR SAID ARTICLES OF LINEN HAVING A WIDTH LESS THAN THEWIDTH OF SAID ARTICLES, CONVEYOR BELT MEANS LOCATED ABOVE SAID SUPPORTPLATE AND ADAPTED TO FRICTIONALLY ENGAGE THE UPPER SURFACES OF SAIDARTICLES AND MOVE THE ARTICLES ALONG THE SUPPORT PLATE, FOLDING MEANSFOR FOLDING A PORTION OF A SAID ARTICLE EXTENDING BEYOND AN EDGE OF SAIDSUPPORT PLATE UNDER THE PLATE, SUPPORT MEANS FOR SUPPORTING SAID SUPPORTPLATE AHEAD OF THE REGION OF SAID FOLDING, AND MAGNETIC MEANS POSITIONEDABOVE SAID CONVEYOR BELT MEANS FOR HOLDING THE SUPPORT PLATE UPWARDLY INTHE REGION OF SAID FOLDING AND THEREBY HOLD A SAID ARTICLE IN FRICTIONALENGAGEMENT WITH THE CONVEYOR BELT MEANS.